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Jargon

Jargon

Every profession makes use of unfamiliar words to express itself. The legal profession is the best known in this respect but by no means the worst offender. Anyone who doubts this should look at one or two medical publications.

Conveyancing is a technical subject, and a good solicitor will always explain what he means in ordinary language.

However, here are some of the terms used, with a brief explanation of each.

Completion This is when the buyer pays for the house and the seller transfers legal ownership. Normally, the money passes between the solicitors. Completion should occur on the date fixed by the contract between buyer and seller. If completion is delayed because one party is at fault, he will normally have to compensate the other party for any loss.

Transfer This is a legal document which transfers ownership of the property from seller to buyer.

Exchange of Contracts This is when the transaction ceases to be "subject to contract" and becomes binding on both parties. What actually happens is that the solicitors for each party exchange signed copies of the contract. At this stage, the purchaser will pay a deposit. The deposit is normally ten percent, but a lower figure is often agreed.

Gazumping If, after the property has been sold "subject to contract", the seller accepts a higher offer from someone else, this is gazumping.

Mortgage The mortgage is the document which gives security to the bank or building society which has lent money to buy the property. The document gives the lender very wide rights over the property if the borrower does not keep up the loan repayments. In the last resort the lender can take the borrower to court and obtain an order giving it possession of the property. The lender then has power to sell the property in order to obtain repayment of the loan.

Title The seller has to show that he has a good and marketable title to the property. This means more than his showing that he is the owner. He must also show that there is nothing wrong with the property from a legal point of view.

Land registry searches There are various types of search made in the Land Registry and the Land Charges Registry. These searches are rarely a cause of delay. Certain of them need to be made in every case. Land registry searches are made just before completion of a purchase. They show whether anything has recently been registered against the property at the Land Registry.

Local search This is a search made by the solicitor in the records of the local council. It should show up certain types of record which may be detrimental to the property. It would be extremely rare to buy a house without making a local search.

Mining search If the property is in a coal mining area, the solicitor will often make a search in the records maintained by the Coal Authority. This search should show whether there has been mining under the property in the past, and if so how likely it is that there will be future subsidence. It will also indicate whether there may be mining in the future.

Subject to contract A transaction is said to be subject to contract until the time a written legal agreement to sell the property has been made. Until a formal agreement exists, either buyer or seller can withdraw.